Update on UC Negotiations with Elsevier

TO: UC Davis Academic Community

Dennis J. Ventry, Jr., Professor of Law and Vice Chair, Academic Senate University Committee on Library and Scholarly Communication

RE: Update on UC Negotiations with Elsevier

As described in our open letter sent November 28, the University of California is in negotiations to renew its systemwide license with scholarly journal publisher Elsevier. If you wish to learn more about the negotiations, the coverage in the Los Angeles Timesand Inside Higher Ed provide good overviews.

Our current contract was set to expire on December 31. While a new contract has not yet been signed, on December 21 the UC and Elsevier agreed to extend the UC’s access to Elsevier journals through January 2019 in a good-faith effort to conclude negotiations by January 31.

As a result of this extension, access to Elsevier journals will continue for the UC community. That means that UC scholars will see no change in the way they access Elsevier journal articles in January.

As the negotiations progress and there is more to report, we will keep both the Davis and Sacramento campus communities apprised of any updates and what to expect starting in February.

Our goals for these negotiations have not changed. We remain hopeful that the UC and Elsevier will be able to reach an agreement that facilitates open access publishing of UC research and contains costs by integrating open access article processing charges (APCs) and subscription fees into a single contract.

To learn more or for updates, visit our UC/Elsevier webpage or the website of the UC Office of Scholarly Communication, which offers background and in-depth FAQs. As always, please also feel free to email the Library with any questions.

MacKenzie Smith, University Librarian and Vice Provost of Digital Scholarship
Dennis J. Ventry, Jr., Professor of Law and Vice Chair, Academic Senate University Committee on Library and Scholarly Communication